The Influence of Religion and the concept of Fate in Beowulf

The concept of fate and religion are abundant throughout both The Iliad and Beowulf. Although Christianity is not clearly mentioned in either of the two poems, Christian ideals are often used. Sacrifice, evil, respect for higher powers, and respect for the dead are all issues that the two poems deal with and hold in high regard.

In the Iliad, superiority of higher powers is often a focus of the mortals. Agamemnon, a Greek war hero “…Sacrificed… a fat bull of five years” and prayed to the gods for success in the war against the Trojans. It can easily be assumed that if the sacrifice had not been made that the Greeks would not have done as well as they did in the war. Furthermore, while Agamemnon was praying the Achian soldiers "Prayed to be spared from death in the maul of war.” The idea of prayer to a higher power in order to seek glory and to avoid or prolong the fate that comes with fighting in a war (death) is constantly being practiced. It is clear they the fate of war is thought to be death because "The god of war is impartial: he hands out death to the man who hands out death." (Book 18, page 293) An example of a time where the g

. . .
Some common words found in the essay are:
Hephaestus Book, Furthermore Beowulf, Furthermore Agamemnon, Beowulf Christian, Christianity Christianity, Beowulf Christianity, Agamemnon Greek, Iliad Beowulf, christian ideals, concept fate, book 18 page, proper burial, book 18, help beowulf, idea evil, respect dead, grendels mother, 18 page, iliad beowulf, Concept Fate, Religion Concept, fate iliad beowulf, beowulf defeat evil, help beowulf defeat, influence religion concept,
Approximate Word count = 1463
Approximate Pages = 6 (250 words per page double spaced)